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One day you’re a teenager, hanging out with friends. The next day, you’re
a quadriplegic. Your life has changed forever. And it seems hopeless.
What do you do?

This is what you do, Anthony Brown would say: No matter how hard it is,
don’t give up. If you give up on you, you let your own self down.

Easy for him to say? Not at all. Nothing has been easy since 1988, when,
as a 15-year-old high school dropout, Anthony got in with the wrong crowd.
Someone he had considered a friend paid to have him killed. Shot six times,
he woke up a quadriplegic in Broward General Hospital. After four months
in that hospital, a depressed Anthony spent a year in rehab at Jackson
Memorial Hospital in Miami. It was there that his extraordinary inner
strength started to emerge.

“At Jackson rehab, I saw that my life wasn’t over,” he said. “It was hard, not walking again. But I had to deal with it and move on.”

Moving on — as in going back to school — wasn’t exactly what Anthony had in mind, but his mother enrolled him in Seagull Alternative High School. After the first day, he was ready to quit.

But Mom knew best: “She made sure I got my butt on that bus,” Anthony said.

At school, Anthony’s inner drive flourished. He graduated as class president and valedictorian, received an achievement award and won medals for wheelchair racing sports at the Junior Orange Bowl Olympics in Miami.

Successes like these encouraged Anthony to set goals. Interested in a career in architecture, he entered the McFatter Technical Center, where he graduated with certifications in both the Architecture and Mechanical Drafting program and AutoCAD (computer-aided drafting). As a student of the Vocational Industry Club of America, Anthony competed in two national AutoCAD competitions in Kansas City, Mo.

One of Anthony’s goals was to become self-supporting.

“I don’t need the government taking care of me,” he said, so in 1999 he accepted a position with The Home Depot in Fort Lauderdale, working as a sales person in the appliances department. And although he reached that goal, it came at a price: working full-time, and going to school full-time as a Business Administration major at American InterContinental University in Weston wore down his body. Anthony got sick, and had to put school on hold. Still, he’ll graduate with an AA degree in December 2009, and intends to continue in the program so he can receive his bachelor’s degree as well.

“I’m getting there,” Anthony acknowledged. “I’m trying to stay focused because I’m close to my first college degree. I’m the first person in my family to get a college degree. That’s something no one ever thought they would see.”

Despite all his successes, Anthony knows he could achieve more but for one great issue: transportation.  Relying on public transportation is a complicated, time-consuming process that affects whatever he does. Case in point: The Home Depot originally hired Anthony to be a kitchen design (that AutoCAD experience was going to come in handy), but he wasn’t able to do the job simply because there was no way for him to get to the district office.

“Transportation is crazy,” Anthony said. “I don’t like to ask for anything. I may be late for work or school because I’m dependent on someone else.”

Until he is able to get a mini-van, Anthony will continue to rely on public transportation. It’s a frustration, yes, but not a complete roadblock. Just look at his track record. Can anyone doubt he will reach another of his goals: to own a business, perhaps a restaurant or nightclub? 

Recently, Anthony learned he may also have to deal with yet another challenge. His current insurance provider, which supplements Medicaid in Miami-Dade County, says it may be dropping its customers in Broward County. This would eliminate Anthony’s aide, who helps him get ready for work and school. Although he may be eligible for a Medicaid waiver, he worries he might need to put work and school on hold yet again. And he is adamant: he doesn’t want to put anything on hold for anybody.

Still, you know Anthony’s determination and faith will see him through.

“God put this drive in me, to say, you can do this,” said Anthony. “Getting hurt was a present from God, otherwise I’d be on the street or sitting in jail.”

Lisa Dolinger Green is a freelance writer based in South Florida. Contact: 561.302.5815 or LDolinger@aol.com.

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